Sliding door lock



March 31, 1964 D. M. BILLARD ETAL .SLIDING DooR Loox VFiled April 9', 1962 N z 5 5 Z m05 MW R 0 Vw/ WLR J wmf@ 0J M 1I 4l AJ ad MT@ 74. 4 vf I I OBJ/O 6 Q0 Y au l B 2 w N ll/// .///7//// 7//////////////////////////4//////// (l TLml /llkl lll 6 ATTORNEY United States Patent Oftice 3,126,727 Patented Mar. 3l., 1964 3,126,727 SLIDING DOOR LOCK Doyle M. Dillard, 1908 Poplar St., and Robert A. Berntsen, 720 S. 2nd St., both of Las Vegas, Nev. Filed Apr. 9, 1962, Ser. No. 185,985 6 Claims. (Cl. 70-97) This invention relates to a lock for sliding doors and has for an object to provide a novel lock structure espeeially suitable for key-locking a sliding door to the jamb of the door from the outside.

Another object of the invention is to provide a latchlock for sliding doors that is adapted for thumb release from the inside and key release from the outside, thereby providing a lock structure for sliding doors that has great utility and advantages heretofore unknown in locks for sliding doors.

This invention also has for its objects to provide such means that are positive in operation, convenient in use, easily installed in a working position and easily disconnected therefrom, economical of manufacture, relatively simple, and of general superiority and serviceability.

The invention also comprises novel details of construction and novel combinations and arrangements of parts, which will more fully appear in the course of the following description and which is based on the accompanying drawing. However, said drawing merely shows, and the following description merely describes, one embodiment of the present invention, which is given by Way of illustration or example only.

In the drawing, like Ireference characters designate similar parts in the several views.

FIG. l is a cross-sectional view taken on the plane of the line 1-1 of FG. 2, the same showing a lock according to the present invention on a sliding door and in spaced relation to a latch on the jamb against which said door closes.

FIG. 2 is an outside elevational view of said lock, the jamb being omitted.

FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view as taken on the line 3 3 of FIG. 1 with the door closed against the jamb and the lock latched to the keeper or latch.

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary face view of the inside handle of the lock as seen from the outwardly directed face thereof.

The drawing shows a jamb 5 of a frame in which a sliding door 6 operates. Said door is provided with a stile 7 into which a glass panel 8 is fitted and which is formed to have a vertical space 9 that is normally enclosed at the side toward the jamb by a wall 10. To prepare said stile 7 to receive the present lock, the wall 10 is partly removed to leave an opening 11, and recesses 12 are formed in the side walls 13 of the stile and open on said opening 11.

The present latch-lock comprises, generally, an outside handle 14, an inside handle 15, a catch unit 14a affixed to the handle 14 and disposed in the space 9 in the stile 7, key-operated means 16 carried by the handle 14 for operating the catch unit 14a from the outside, thumboperated means 17 for operating said catch unit from the inside, and a latch 18 afiixed to the jamb 5 and having operative engagement with the catch unit 14a.

The outside handle 14 is shown as an angle member having a Wall plate 20 in r'latwise engagement with the outer side wall 13 of the stile, and a normal wall plate 21 in atwise engagement with the wall of the stile and closing the opening 11 in said wall 10. An elongated opening 22 is formed in wall plate 21 of a size to freely admit the latch 18 when the door is closed against the jamb 5. Said outside handle further comprises a block 23 that extends in an outward direction from the wall plate 20 and is located adjacent the edge of the latter wall plate that is remote from the wall plate 21. Said block constitutes a push handle by means of which the door 6 may be slid in either direction, as desired. A cylinder lock 24 extends through said block 23 and, conventionally, is provided with a revolving plug that has an inward tongue 25.

The inside handle 15 is shown as a plate 26 that is in llatwise engagement with the inner side wall 13 of the stile. A block 27 is carried by said plate 26, the same extending in an inward direction in opposed relation to the block 23. Said block 27 carries a thumb release lever 28 that, similar to the cylinder lock 24, is provided with a tongue 29.

Said handles 14 and 15 are fastened together to have a U form, as can be seen in FIG. l, by means of suitable screws or bolts 30 which also aliix the handles to the door stile 7. Said bolts extend through the space 9 in the stile both above and below the catch unit 14a.

Said unit 14a is axed to the inner face of the handle wall plate 21. The same comprises a bracket plate 31 that is spaced from and is parallel to the handle wall plate 20. Said plate 31 mounts a rotational disc 32 that has oppositely directed clutch ends 33 and 34. A pair of catch levers 35 are pivoted in vertical spaced relation on separate pivots 36 and are provided on their free ends with catch portions 37 that are adjacent and in register with an opening 38 in the bracket plate 31 and which is in register with and, therefore, receptive of the latch 18. In this case, the lever portions 37 extend through arcuate slots 39 in the bracket plate 31, and a spring 40 connects said levers and biases the portions 37 thereof toward each other. This is the normal and latching position of said levers, as shown in FIG. 3. When said levers are spread, either by the latch 18 as the door is slid toward the jamb 5, by a key in the cylinder lock 24 and operating the means 16, or by turning of the thumb release lever 28 and operating the means 17, the door may be slid away from the jamb 5 since the latch lever portions 37 are free of the latch 18.

The means 16 comprises a disc 41 recessed in the inner face of the handle plate 20 and connected to the tongue 25 which, therefore, rotates said disc, a similarly recessed disc 42. that is aligned with the axis of the disc 32 of the catch unit 14a and has a coupling pin 43 in engagement With clutch 33, and a link 44 connecting said discs 41 and 42 in a crank-like engagement that transmits the rotation of disc 41 to disc 42, thereby causing comparable rotation of the disc 32.

In a similar manner, the means 17 comprises a disc 45 that rotates with the tongue 29 upon actuation of the thumb release lever 28, a disc 46 aligned with the axis of disc 32, a coupling pin 47 that is engaged with the clutch 34, and a link 48 that connects the discs 45 and 46. It will be clear that the lever 28 causes rotation of disc 32 from the inside of the door in the same manner as the cylinder lock 24 causes said rotation from the outside.

Links 49 and 50 connect the disc 32 to the latch levers 35 in such a manner that the link 49 pushes on one lever while the link 50 pulls on the other lever when a key or the thumb release lever 28 is used to rotate the disc 32. Hence, the levers 35 will be spread apart and the door may be slid open.

The latch 18 is formed so the same will cam the latch levers apart when the door is slid closed, thus causing automatic latching of the door. If desired, an unlocking hold means, suggested by the button 51 in the block 27 may be used in the usual way to hold the latch levers spread, thereby preventing latching of the door.

While the foregoing has illustrated and described what is now contemplated to be the best mode of carrying out the invention, the construction is, of course, subject to modification without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, it is not desired to restrict the invention to the particular form of construction illustrated and described, but to cover all modifications that may fall within the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described this invention, what is claimed and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

l. In a door slidable toward and from a latch,

(a) a U-shaped handle formed of side plates on each side of the door and a connecting plate at the edge of the door directed toward the latch,

(b) a catch unit carried by said connecting plate and including spring-biased catch levers to engage the latch when the door is closed,

(c) key-operated means to spread said levers from one side of the door, and

(d) manual means to similarly spread said levers from the other side of the door.

2. In a door according to claim 1,

(a) an outwardly directed block on each side handle part for manual pushing of the door toward and from the latch,

(b) the key-operated means, in part, being carried by one block, and

(c) the mentioned manual means being carried by the other block.

3. In a sliding door lock,

(a) a first handle part moving a side plate and a plate normal thereto,

(b) a block extending in an outward direction from the side plate,

(c) a second handle part comprising a side plate,

(d) bolt means to connect said handle parts in U form with the side plates parallel and to connect the same to the hollow stile of a sliding door,

(e) a catch unit carried by the normal plate of the rst handle part and residing within the hollow of said stile,

(f) key-operated means interconnecting the first handle part and the catch unit to actuate the latter, and

(g) manual means interconnecting the second handle part and the catch unit to actuate the same.

4. A sliding door lock comprising (a) a two-part handle with a portion on the outside of the door, a portion on the inside, and a portion at the end of the door and connecting said outside and inside portions,

(b) outwardly directed blocks provided on said outside and inside portions,

(c) a spring catch carried by said connecting portion of the handle,

(d) key-operated means including a cylinder lock, carried by the block on the outside portion and connecting said outside portion with said catch to release the same, and

(e) manual means including a thumb release lever carried by the block on the inside portion and connecting said inside portion with said catch to release the same.

5. A sliding door lock comprising (a) a two-part handle with a portion on the outside of the door, a portion on the inside, and a portion at the end of the door and connecting said outside and inside portions,

(b) a spring catch carried by said connecting portion of the handle and provided with a pair of normally contracted and separable catch levers,

(c) key-operated means connecting the handle portion on the outside of the door with said catch to separate said levers and release the catch, and

(d) manual means connecting the handle portion on the inside of said door with said catch to separate said levers and release the catch,

(e) the key-operated means and the manual means being selectively operable to spread said catch levers to release position.

6. In a sliding door lock according to claim 3,

(a) the block in the rst handle part mounting a cylinder lock as part of the key-operated means, and (b) a second block extending in an outward direction from the side plate in the second handle part and provided with a thumb release lever, said release lever comprising a part of said manual means.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 973,301 Purdham Oct. 18, 1910 3,025,693 Braginetz Mar. 20, 1962 3,046,776 Marotto et al July 31, 1962 

3. IN A SLIDING DOOR LOCK, (A) A FIRST HANDLE PART MOVING A SIDE PLATE AND A PLATE NORMAL THERETO, (B) A BLOCK EXTENDING IN AN OUTWARD DIRECTION FROM THE SIDE PLATE, (C) A SECOND HANDLE PART COMPRISING A SIDE PLATE, (D) BOLT MEANS TO CONNECT SAID HANDLE PARTS IN U FORM WITH THE SIDE PLATES PARALLEL AND TO CONNECT THE SAME TO THE HOLLOW STILE OF A SLIDING DOOR, (E) A CATCH UNIT CARRIED BY THE NORMAL PLATE OF THE FIRST HANDLE PART AND RESIDING WITHIN THE HOLLOW OF SAID STILE, (F) KEY-OPERATED MEANS INTERCONNECTING THE FIRST HANDLE PART AND THE CATCH UNIT TO ACTUATE THE LATTER, AND (G) MANUAL MEANS INTERCONNECTING THE SECOND HANDLE PART AND THE CATCH UNIT TO ACTUATE THE SAME. 